HF 3404

as introduced - 81st Legislature (1999 - 2000) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to utilities; modifying biomass mandate; 
  1.3             amending Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 216B.2424, 
  1.4             subdivision 5. 
  1.5   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.6      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 216B.2424, 
  1.7   subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
  1.8      Subd. 5.  [MANDATE.] (a) A public utility, as defined in 
  1.9   section 216B.02, subdivision 4, that operates a nuclear-powered 
  1.10  electric generating plant within this state must construct and 
  1.11  operate, purchase, or contract to construct and operate (1) by 
  1.12  December 31, 1998, 50 megawatts of electric energy installed 
  1.13  capacity generated by farm-grown closed-loop biomass scheduled 
  1.14  to be operational by December 31, 2001; and (2) by December 31, 
  1.15  1998, an additional 75 megawatts of installed capacity so 
  1.16  generated scheduled to be operational by December 31, 2002.  
  1.17     (b) A public utility may not purchase the installed 
  1.18  capacity required under this section or contract with another 
  1.19  party to construct and operate the installed capacity required 
  1.20  under this section, except that a public utility may purchase up 
  1.21  to 50 megawatts of 125 megawatts of installed capacity required 
  1.22  to be constructed and operated by the utility under this section 
  1.23  from other parties if the public utility has entered into any 
  1.24  contract for electric energy installed capacity that meets the 
  1.25  requirements of this section and the contract has been approved 
  2.1   by the commission and not terminated before the effective date 
  2.2   of this act.  Of the total 125 megawatts of biomass electric 
  2.3   energy installed capacity required under this section, no more 
  2.4   than 75 megawatts may be provided by a single project.  Of the 
  2.5   75 megawatts of biomass electric energy installed capacity 
  2.6   required under clause (2), no more than 25 megawatts of this 
  2.7   capacity may be provided by a St. Paul district heating and 
  2.8   cooling system cogeneration facility utilizing waste wood as a 
  2.9   primary fuel source.  The St. Paul district heating and cooling 
  2.10  system cogeneration facility need not use biomass that complies 
  2.11  with the definition in subdivision 1.  The public utility must 
  2.12  accept and consider on an equal basis with other proposals a 
  2.13  proposal to satisfy the requirements of this section that 
  2.14  includes a project that exceeds the megawatt capacity 
  2.15  requirements of either clause (1) or (2) and that proposes to 
  2.16  sell the excess capacity to the public utility or to other 
  2.17  purchasers. 
  2.18     Sec. 2.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  2.19     Section 1 is effective the day following final enactment.